Privacy

Who is responsible

Strains is the controller for this website and is independently operated in the United Kingdom. For privacy enquiries or rights requests, email [email protected] with ‘Privacy’ in the subject line.

What we process and why

The public archive does not require an account. A free Academy account is needed to save lesson progress, private working notes, practice lab answers, assessment attempts and certificates across devices. Academy records use the authentication provider's user identifier. Cloudflare receives ordinary request information, such as IP address, browser details, requested page and time, to deliver, secure and monitor the site. We rely on legitimate interests in operating a secure and reliable public archive and learning platform.

Google Analytics runs in Advanced Consent Mode. With analytics storage denied, Google receives cookieless page views and bounded interaction events so we can understand aggregate use and improve the site. We rely on legitimate interests for this limited measurement. Analytics cookies are used only after consent. Advertising storage, advertising user data, personalisation and Google Signals stay disabled.

Newsletter sign-up sends the email address to our owner-operated Listmonk service for double opt-in updates. We use consent for the mailing list. Correction emails and evidence are processed to assess and document archive accuracy, based on our legitimate interests in maintaining the record.

Analytics choices

‘Continue without analytics cookies’ keeps analytics storage denied but still sends cookieless measurements. These may include the page, timestamp, referrer, browser information, consent state and a random number; we do not describe them as anonymous. ‘Allow analytics cookies’ enables first-party GA4 cookies for session and repeat-visit measurement. ‘Turn off analytics’ records an objection locally, removes accessible GA cookies and prevents the Google tag loading on later pages.

Free-form strain searches are removed from the address before analytics initialises and are never included in the strain search event. Newsletter email addresses, correction text and medical information are not sent to GA4. You can reopen Cookie settings from the footer at any time.

Academy practice labs

Practice lab answers are saved to the learner account. The timed effects journal may contain information about a learner's physical or mental state, so it collects only the observations needed for the exercise and asks learners not to enter diagnoses, medication details or medical history. Journal answers follow the Academy account-retention and deletion controls described below.

Processors and transfers

Cloudflare provides hosting and security, Clerk handles Academy identity, Google provides Analytics, and our own Listmonk service manages newsletter consent. Our mail provider handles messages sent to the corrections address. These services receive only the information needed for their role. Cloudflare, Clerk and Google may process information outside the United Kingdom under their contractual transfer safeguards.

Retention

The analytics choice remains in local browser storage until it is changed or cleared. Consented GA4 cookies expire after no more than 90 days and are not extended on each visit. GA4 event-level retention is controlled in the property and is no longer than 14 months; aggregated standard reports may remain longer. Hosting and security logs are kept according to provider settings and only while needed for delivery, abuse prevention or incident investigation.

Newsletter details are kept until consent is withdrawn, with a minimal suppression record where needed to honour an unsubscribe. Academy course records are kept while the learner account and its issued credentials remain active; account deletion and certificate revocation are handled separately so a revoked credential cannot appear valid. Correction evidence is retained while needed to resolve and support the editorial record, then minimised. Legal obligations or an active dispute may require longer retention.

Archive photographs

Photographs with a visible face are excluded from public exports. Restricted private originals may be preserved where necessary to maintain archive provenance and prevent a misleading public record. They are not used for public identification or analytics. Archive subjects may object or request review or removal through the privacy contact; each request is assessed against privacy, provenance and any legal obligation to retain the record.

Your rights

Depending on the circumstances, you may ask for access, correction, deletion, restriction or portability, object to legitimate-interest processing, or withdraw consent without affecting earlier lawful processing. You may complain to the UK Information Commissioner at ico.org.uk/make-a-complaint/data-protection-complaints/.